Immigrant America : A Portrait

by Portes, Alejandro

• ISBN13: 9780520250413
• ISBN10: 0520250419
• Edition: 3rd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-10-03
• Publisher: Univ of California Pr

Summary

This third edition of the widely acclaimed classic has been thoroughly expanded and updated to reflect current demographic, economic, and political realities. Drawing on recent census data and other primary sources, Portes and Rumbaut have infused the entire text with new information and added a vivid array of new vignettes and illustrations. Recognized for its superb portrayal of immigration and immigrant lives in the United States, this book probes the dynamics of immigrant politics, examining questions of identity and loyalty among newcomers, and explores the psychological consequences of varying modes of migration and acculturation. The authors look at patterns of settlement in urban America, discuss the problems of English-language acquisition and bilingual education, explain how immigrants incorporate themselves into the American economy, and examine the trajectories of their children from adolescence to early adulthood. With a vital new chapter on religion--and fresh analyses of topics ranging from patterns of incarceration to the mobility of the second generation and the unintended consequences of public policies--this updated edition is indispensable for framing and informing issues that promise to be even more hotly and urgently contested as the subject moves to the center of national debate..

Author Biography

Alejandro Portes is Professor of Sociology at Princeton University and Director of the Center for Migration and Development Ruben G. Rumbaut is Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Irvine, and Co-Director of the Center for Research on Immigration, Population, and Public Policy

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	ix
List of Tables	xi
Preface to the Third Edition	xv
Preface to the Second Edition	xix
Preface to the First Edition	xxiii
Acknowledgments for the Third Edition	xxvii
Acknowledgments for the Second Edition	xxxi
Acknowledgments for the First Edition	xxxiii
1 Nine Stories	1	(11)
2 Who They Are and Why They Come	12	(25)
The Origins of Immigration	14	(5)
Immigrants and Their Types	19	(15)
Overview	34	(3)
3 Moving: Patterns of Immigrant Settlement and Spatial Mobility	37	(30)
The Pioneers	38	(2)
Following in the Footsteps	40	(3)
Contemporary Settlement Patterns: A Map of Immigrant America	43	(6)
Locational Decisions of Immigrant Groups	49	(6)
Preferred Places	55	(5)
Persistent Ethnicity	60	(3)
Conclusion: The Pros and Cons of Spatial Concentration	63	(4)
4 Making It in America: Occupational and Economic Adaptation	67	(50)
Immigrants in the American Economy	68	(23)
Explaining the Differences: Modes of Incorporation	91	(10)
Conclusion	101	(16)
5 From Immigrants to Ethnics: Identity, Citizenship, and Political Participation	117	(51)
In the Society and Not of It	117	(4)
Immigrant Politics at the Turn of the Century	121	(9)
Immigrant Politics Today	130	(10)
Making It Count: Citizenship Acquisition	140	(7)
The Future of Immigrant Politics	147	(15)
Variations within a Theme	162	(3)
Conclusion	165	(3)
6 A Foreign World: Immigration, Mental Health, and Acculturation	168	(37)
Travel and Travail	168	(2)
Marginality and Freedom	170	(2)
Early Psychopathology: The Eugenics Approach to Mental Illness	172	(3)
From Nationality to Class and Context: The Changed Etiology of Mental Illness	175	(3)
Immigrants and Refugees: Contemporary Trends	178	(7)
Contexts of Incorporation: Mental Health and Help Seeking	185	(3)
Acculturation and Its Discontents	188	(6)
Immigration and Incarceration	194	(3)
Acculturation and Perceptions of Discrimination	197	(4)
Conclusion: The Major Determinants of Immigrant Psychology	201	(4)
7 Learning the Ropes: Language and Education	205	(39)
Patterns of English Language Acquisition in the United States	207	(11)
Language Diversity and Resilience in the United States Today	218	(14)
Assimilation and Linguistic Pluralism in the United States	232	(9)
Conclusion	241	(3)
8 Growing Up American: The New Second Generation	244	(55)
The New Second Generation at a Glance	245	(3)
Parental Human Capital and Modes of Incorporation	248	(3)
The Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study	251	(4)
Where They Grow Up: Challenges to Second-Generation Adaptation	255	(9)
Confronting the Challenge	264	(7)
Segmented Assimilation in Early Adulthood	271	(9)
Conclusion	280	(19)
9 Religion: The Enduring Presence	299	(44)
Yesterday and Today	300	(2)
Religion and Modes of Incorporation	302	(4)
Religious Diversity and Change	306	(5)
Religion and Transnationalism	311	(4)
Religion and the Second Generation	315	(10)
Religion: Linear and Reactive	325	(6)
The Mexican Experience	331	(4)
Islam	335	(4)
Conclusion	339	(4)
10 Conclusion: Immigration and Public Policy	343	(30)
A Game of Mirrors: The Public Perception of Immigration	346	(5)
The Reality Underneath: The Political Economy of Immigration	351	(7)
The Clash of Ideology and Reality	358	(5)
Better Policies for a Better Future	363	(8)
Conclusion	371	(2)
Notes	373	(28)
References	401	(46)
Index	447